The most beautiful summer flowers in Japan
- Published on : 06/03/2025
- by : Lucie G.
- Youtube
Lavender fields in Furano
© Cindy Bissig, Unsplash
While Japan is best known for its cherry blossoms in spring, the summer season offers many other flower spectacles not to be missed!
If your stay in Japan takes place during the hot, humid summer season, don't miss the lotus, iris and lavender fields in bloom! In addition to the many beautiful parks and gardens, there are many natural fields throughout the archipelago featuring these flowers. Hanami (flower viewing) is a very important festival in Japanese culture, and is not limited to cherry trees (sakura in Japanese). You can enjoy the beauty of any flower, so don't hesitate to discover the other floral wonders Japan has to offer!
Iris :
In Japan, many irises flourish in spring and summer. There are large varieties, such as Japanese irises, as well as smaller, bushy forms. Mostly purple irises are found in Japan, although white irises can also be found.
When to grow ? June
Our favorite spots : Odawara Castle boasts a splendid display of irises, as well as hydrangeas under the castle. You can also admire their beauty at night, when they are enhanced by soft lighting. Another place where irises take pride of place is Tagajo Castle, especially during the Tagajo Site Iris Festival.
Find out more: Admiring irises in Japan
Purple irises in Nara's iris park
© 663highland, wikimedias
Lavenders
Lavenders bring a soft violet hue to fields across the Japanese archipelago! The summer blooming of these flowering bushes is a delight for all lovers of this soothingly fragrant plant.
When? June to August
Our favorite spots: The lavender fields of Furano and Biei in Hokkaido are Japan's best-known, not least for their proximity to other colorful flower fields. There's even a train that takes you to the foot of these fields (Furano Lavender Express or Furano Biei Norokko Train). Around Tokyo, Tambara Park offers a magnificent view of the lavender fields from a promontory. The Herb Festival is held in front of the Kawaguchiko, in Oishi Park and in Yagizaki Park, where a purple field of lavender is created in front of Mount Fuji.
Hydrangeas
The end of the spring season and the beginning of summer are heralded by the blooming of hydrangeas, these magnificent flowers that come in all colors. The color of the petals depends on the soil in which the plant is planted. Hydrangeas can be found in many locations, where they can be admired in different colors every time. The hydrangea is a very important flower in Japanese culture, so you'll find it featured at many festivals, temples and shrines across Japan.
Hydrangeas at Meigetsu-in temple in Kamakura
© Raita Futo, wikimedias
When? June to July
Our favorite spots: We recommend a visit to Meigetsuin temple, also known as Ajisai-dera (the hydrangea temple), located in the city of Kamakura. In Kyoto, the Mimurotoji temple is particularly charming, with an abundance of hydrangeas in bloom. Further north, in Akita, the Unsho-ji temple, with its flower garden, is one of the most beautiful places to admire hydrangeas. In Shimoda, during the whole month of June, thousands of hydrangeas bloom in Shimoda Park.
Lotus
A sacred flower in the Buddhist religion, the lotus is one of the most beautiful flowers to bloom in summer. It is one of the most important flowers in Japanese culture, representing purity and renewal. Varying in color from white to pink, this flower blooms in water and climbs several centimetres above the pond in which it's located. Round, green leaves surround it, adding to the beauty of this aquatic plant.
When? July to August
Lotus flowers in Shinobazu Pond, Ueno Park
© Yoshikazu Takada, wikimedias
Our favorite spots: Lakes Izunuma and Uchinuma, in Miyagi prefecture, are the perfect place to admire lotuses. Boat trips across the lakes are available, allowing you to wander among the flowers. In Tokyo's Ueno Park, you'll find hasu no ike, a pond in which several thousand lotuses bloom.
More places to admire lotuses: Admire lotuses in Japan
Sunflowers
A true symbol of summer, sunflowers grow in great numbers across the archipelago ! This plant gets its Japanese name(himawari ひまわり) from the fact that their heads turn and follow the sun. Many gardens have small fields of these large yellow flowers across Japan, always when the weather is warm.
When? July to August
Our favorite spots : In Ibaraki, the Akeno Sunflower Festival takes place every year when the sunflowers are in bloom. The spectacle is not to be missed from late July to late August! In Kansai, Sunflower Hill Park is illuminated by fields of sunflowers in summer, before giving way to cosmos in autumn.
Here's more information about sunflowers in Japan : 4 places to admire sunflowers near Tokyo // 5 places to admire sunflowers in Hokkaido
Explore flowers across Japan with the JR Pass!
Belles de jour/ipomées
Belles de jour (or ipomeas) are small, trumpet-shaped Japanese flowers that bloom in July. In addition to the fact that these flowers bloom in the morning and close in the evening, their blue color is one of the rarest in nature. In Japanese, they're called asagao (朝顔), which literally means morning face.
When? July
Our favorite spot: The Iriya Asagao Festival, where you can admire over 1,000 varieties of blue ipomoea in summer over three days!
Blue Ipomoea
© Ashlee Marie, Unsplash
Nikko Kisuge
Kisuge are a kind of day lily, yellow to orange in color. They bloom naturally at the edge of forests throughout the Japanese archipelago (except Hokkaido). Nikko Kisuge is a variety that grows specifically near Nikko. Fields of these flowers are particularly beautiful to admire, as they are always surrounded by wild nature and splendid scenery.
When? July to August
Our favorite spot: The Kirifuri-kogen plateau, near Nikko, sees more than 200,000 "Nikko Kisuge" in bloom, as well as offering a splendid view of the natural, verdant landscape at heights of over 1,000 meters.
Roses
Roses come in many varieties, many of which bloom in summer! In Japan, you'll often find rose gardens all over the archipelago, from Hokkaido to Kyushu, sometimes with magnificent gardens in honor of this flower.
When? June - July
Our favorite spots: The Keisei Rose Garden in Chiba boasts over 10,000 rose plants and more than 160 different varieties! In Tokyo, we recommend two gardens : Kyu-Furukawa Gardens and Imperial Garden Park, with its resplendent rose garden.
